Sri Lanka’s new Cabinet sworn in on Monday, November 18, 2024, in Colombo.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on Monday (November 18, 2024) installed Sri Lanka’s new 21-member Cabinet, days after his National People’s Power [NPP] won a massive mandate in the parliamentary polls. He retained key portfolios of Defence, Finance, Planning, and Digital Economy.

Mr. Dissanayake reappointed Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya, who along with the team of Ministers, was sworn in at the Presidential Secretariat on Monday (November 18, 2024) morning. Vijitha Herath, who was Foreign Minister in the interim government, will continue in the position.

The 225-member legislature will include several young, first-time MPs and 21 women, the highest female representation in Sri Lankan Parliament, according to local media. The NPP also nominated Sugath Wasantha De Silva, a person with visual disability, to the legislature, through the additional seats it won based on its vote share. It is the first time in Sri Lanka’s history that a person with disability will serve as MP.

President Dissanayake and the NPP rose to power, on a pledge to root out corruption and bring in a new political culture. With 159 seats in Parliament, the NPP government has over a two-thirds majority to take forward its ambitious reform agenda, while rebuilding the country’s broken economy.

Also read: In Sri Lanka, a long and rocky road to economic recovery

A delegation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is currently in Colombo to review its ongoing programme. Following this third review, the Fund is expected to release the next tranche of about $337 million of the $2.9 billion-package it pledged to Sri Lanka in 2022, after the island nation declared an unprecedented default on its external debt.  

President Dissanayake “urged the IMF to maintain a balanced approach” that considers the hardships faced by citizens, his office said in a statement. He told the delegation that his government was committed to effective social spending, prioritising “combating child poverty and malnutrition, and providing better support for differently abled individuals.”

As the Dissanayake government works to meet the fiscal targets set out in the programme, scores of Sri Lankans will look to the government for relief from the painful austerity measures that came with it. Two years after citizens took to the streets, protesting the acute shortage of essentials and long power cuts, they are now grappling with an enduring high cost of living, although supplies have been restored.

In his remarks after Monday’s (November 18, 2024) swearing in ceremony, President Dissanayake urged Ministers to use the “immense power” granted to them responsibly. “While the victory is monumental, the weight of the responsibility that comes with it is equally important,” he said, underscoring the need for collective effort.

The election outcome marks the “end of divisive politics” in the country and represents a “call for the freedom of the oppressed and economically marginalised”, he said, adding that the NPP must now switch gears from political activism to strong governance. “From November 14 [general election day], the measure of our success will be the quality of governance we deliver,” Mr. Dissanayake said.